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Prologue by Ember Nickel Inbar Trueflight stared out at the placid ocean, his daughter Branlea on his lap. His wife, Grath Longfletch, crept up behind them. "It's past yore bedtimes-both of ye. What are you looking at?" Inbar chuckled. "Checking for ghost ships." "Wassa ghost ship?" Branlea demanded. "It's just a silly story." "It's yore holt's!" Inbar interrupted, indignant. "Branlea's too young to hear it." "No she ain't. There's war, sure, but friendship, love, sacrifices'n'voyages...All the parts of a good yarn. An don' forget tha betrayal by the little fox prince!" "I wanna hear!" Branlea demanded. "Too right y'do. Well, two mice and a hedgehog were sailing across the waters..." "If you're going to tell it," Grath rolled her eyes, "tell it right. My grandsire's father's grand...ah, summat or other...was buildin' a holt for his clan, when he saw a ship across the waves..." The First Night's Entertainment: The Queen and the Corsair Chapter 1 by Viperhawk Kidour Lutra paused from his work and gazed out to sea. The day was enveloped by a thick white fog, and all around him the otters of his clan were shouting to eachother as they transported materiels and helped to construct a good holt. "Geyrum, Sekra, c'mere an' look at this," he shouted. The burly otter and his mate walked over to their cheiftain. "Aye, cheif?" "Yeah, what is it?" "Look... Out there, to the nor'west a bit, in the mists..." The two otters looked hard in the direction their cheif had pointed. "I don't see anythin', Kidour..." "Wait... Out there, quite faint... It's a ship!" "Aye, an' a big one, at that." --- At the mountain of Salamandastron, the badger lady Melogale the Lithe gazed at the same fog from the wide windows of the observation room. The unusually thin (but still powerful) badger bilnked and stared into the misty air over the sea. There it was, wait, no, there it was. She tried to get a fix on the ghostly pale shape drifting through the fog, heading north. --- Several creatures along the coast tried to get a fix on similar shapes, all seeming to head up the coast, northward... Chapter 2 by Balfour, the wiley Category:Fan Fiction Esmeralda, the vixen held her paw to the air, signaling her band of vermin to halt. Moonlight glitterd savagely off her elaborate crespine and diadem. Then a harsh, clearly intonated voice issued from the vixen's sharp white teeth "I hear the sound of . . . voices. They are not far off. We must take extreme caution." Had one who had not been used to the sound of that voice heard, he or she would have belived it to have been a voice from beyond the gates of Dark Forest. Esmeralda's second in command, a tawny wildcat called Lord Sylk approched the vixen, using a richly decorated spear to support himself ostentatiously. "My lady, this is a proper site at which to make camp. Shall I tell the battalions to commence fortifing the area for the night?" asked the wildcat in a smooth bass. "No. There is not enough time for rest. We must march to conquest! To win against our foes. O nce we have conquered, we will be able to rest. I however must rest now to tend to my son." said the vixen. She gave another strange motion with her left paw. Obediantly, four ermines in long tunics appeared behind her. They carried a very sturdy and wide litter armoured well with plates of iron and siver barbs at the corners. Inside the litter was covered with purple, red and vivid green velvet, for these were the colors of the Queen Esmeralda. In side a fox in the age between maturity and a dibbun sat. He was called Sabrin and was rather unlike with his mother. The vixen gracefully climbed into the litter. "When will the coarsairs arrive, mother?" asked the younger fox. "Don't speak of those pirates! They are only a means of achieving our retribution on our enimies." said the queen as she drew shut the chain mail curtains of the litter. Then Esmeralda began her son's lesson in herbs, assasination, and family lore; of how the woodlanders had wronged the great aunt, Lady Fortunata of Kotir, and many other lies. -- Captain Rasha, the pine martin stood at the helm of THE SHADOW WAVE, navigating the ship to the rounde vouz point. Behind him a fat pack of searats guzzled grog in the thick fog. "Git up, ye good fer nothin' cheese hoardin' heap o' mangy varmints! Thars work ta be done!" cursed the old captin "Brinesop, me matey, may happen some day you'll wake up in yer bunk and ya might have a great poke hole in yer snout if ya don't get ta work! We've got to meet that winsome vixen queen soon, or we won't be paid, you great stinking rabble. Now yed better -." Rasha stopped because he saw a nice little settlement through the swirling mist, perfect for raiding. There were woodlanders to plunder, hopefully otters or even badgers, Captain Rasha hated those playful otters and honorable badgers with their Eulile or somthing. "Me maties, how would you loike a treat?" asked Captain Rasha as he steered THE SHADOW WAVE towards the settlement. Chapter 3 by Some random redwall fan Category:Fan Fiction Note: I'm horrible at writing the accents of the corsairs and the otters. Could someone correct the spots that don't sound like the creatures? Unfortunately for Captain Rasha, no badgers were present at the hapless settlement. With quiet creaks and groans, the ship sailed towards the lights giving away the targets position. Captian Rasha turned to face his hideous crew. He smiled inwardly. Murderers, every last one of them. Heartless, cold, brutal murderers. What chance did this settlement stand? "Ready your weapons." he snarled as he turned once more to face the lights on the beach ahead. With several mettallic sounds, cutlasses, scimitars, claymores, rapiers, longswords, and countless other weapons of war were unsheathed held at the ready. Rasha unsheathed his own scimitar. It was a beautiful weapon, with a grip of pure leather and an ice-blue steel blade curving slightly to a sharpened point. Tally marks were carved into the grip itself with grim effiency. Forty-seven and counting. Preparations were also being made at Holt Lutra. Otters scurried about crazily, carrying all manners of weapons, food, and even children. A burly male otter kissed his wife and hugged his small son before they were led down into the safe tunnels. The little son kept yelling for his daddy, and the otterwife hugged him tightly and tears sprang from her eyes. "Don't worry honey, daddy'll come back." I hope, she thought as she descended the earthy stairs leading to a hollow underground cavern, filled with women and children. Kidour Lutra grunted as he shoved the last bit of the barricade into place. He stepped back to examine his work. What had been the entrance to the safe tunnels was now covered in wood, leaves and dirt. To the casual eye, it seemed like nothing but a patch of ground. Let's hope this won't be as bad as it looks he thought as he gazed over his shoulder to the sea. That ship was a corsair vessel, that much he was sure of. It was in poor condition and flying a blood-red flag. What's more, Glasseyes had identified armed vermin all over the ship. Glasseyes had the best vision of the whole tribe. If Glasseyes was right, Holt Lutra might soon be turned into a prime example of Hellgates on Earth. Ironically, Glasseyes vision was currently clouded by sweat pouring down his face. He was laying on his belly in a line of grim-faced otters, each bearing a ranged weapon of sorts. Some had slings, others had bows, many had javelins, and a rare few had slingshots. Glasseyes himself twirled his sling nervously, accidentally slamming his wrist with the loaded end. The pain made the situation all the more worse. The otter line stood overlooking the pebbled beach. A few yards inland from the tideline was wooded. A mound of earth, covered with bushes, stood just above pebbled shore. The line lay on their stomachs among the bushes, camoflouaged with face paint made from ashes and various vegetable matter. With any luck, they would not be seen until it was to late. THE SHADOW WAVE anchored a few yards from the shore. With silent effiency, the crew leapt overboard into the shallows. The lights of the otter holt had been doused long ago, leaving the corsairs stumbling through the shallows in the inky blackness of night. Captain Rasha leapt from his ship as the last crew member hit the water below. The crew waded towards the shore, but Rasha halted their progress. "Halt! Blithering idiots, they're expecting us! Do ye want to waltz into an ambush?" Sheepishly, the crew looked at each other. The thought had never even occurred to them. Well, that's why Rasha was Captain. "Listen, Ragfoot, take Fishtail and Scumblood with ye. Scout ahead, and report back once ye see or hear anything. The rest of you, stay against the ship. I'll gut the idjit who makes a sound loud enough to alert them. Clear?" The three stoats nodded and waded towards the beach. Glasseyes nudged the otter next to him. "Uh-oh mate, here come scouts. Now what?" he whispered in panic. The other otter hissed, "Quiet mate, Kidour has it covered." As if on cue, three distinct slitting noises were heard, followed by dragging. Kidour appeared next to Glasseyes, dragging the body of Ragfoot behind him. He sheathed his bloodied agger. "The scouts have been dealt with." he said with a grim tone. "Did that alert the others?" Glasseyes gazed towards the anchored ship. "Let's hope not." "What's keeping those idiots?" Captian Rasha growled in frustration. Stupid as they were, it shouldn't take over ten minutes for a couple of stoats to scout ahead. Rasha considered sending more scouts, and decided against it. There was a bad aura about this place... He turned to a weasel standing near him. "Spraytail, take ten others with you and head up to the shore. If something moves and it isn't a searat, spike it. If it screams and yells for help, spike it again. Go!" Kidour kneeled next to Glasseyes and shook his head. "Those corsairs aren't idiots. Look, they've sent up a minor fighting force now. You two, get ready." With that, the otter chieftain slithered away down the line, whispering as he went. "All of you, get ready mates." It wasn't the sudden rustle that alerted Spraytail of another creature's presence, nor was it the feeling of a body sneaking up behind him. It was the sudden feel of a dagger across his throat. The otter speedily dragged the lifeless corsair into the bushes and laid low. "Oye, Spraytail, where do we-" the unlucky speaker, a tall, sinewy weasel, gasped slightly as the speeding javelin buried itself into the side of his neck. The carcass slumped to the ground. Another corsair, Waveclaw, yelled aloud in surprise, but spotted a sleek form creeping back into the shadows. Speedily, the rat grabbed the scruff of the creature's neck and dragged him up to his chest, using him like a shield. It was an otter. "Oye, mates, look at this, we're all getting slayed by a bunch of spineless waterdogs." Around him, corsairs drew their weapons and gazed about, looking for more. Emboldened, Waveclaw pressed a dagger lightly against the struggling otter's throat. The otter felt the cold steel against him, but all he could think of was his wife and son hiding in the tunnels, praying to the fates they would see him again. Waveclaw yelled out, "Right, Waterdog's, cock your lugs and listen to-" he got no further. A dagger came zipping out of the darkness, spinning wildly. It's steel blade whizzed over the otter's shoulder and was suddenly stained red as it sliced into Waveclaw's eye, slaying him instantly. The corsair released his grip on the otter and fell to the ground. The deep voice of Kidour rang out in the night air. "That's it mates, they know we're here! Chaaarrrrge!!" Corsairs yelled in surprise as several otters ran out of the darkness, the flame of battle alight in their eyes. Chapter 4 by the first paragraph by Barkjon the second paragraph is byTiriawildlough and with a very long contribution, which composes all of the later parts of this chapter by Balfour, the wiley News of the raid on the Lutra Holt spread . . . THE SHADOW WAVE had landed near Holt Lutra. To the young sea otter Swiftshot, it seemed to near. Why would the infamous pine marten Captain Rasha land near the humble and peaceful Holt Lutra? It just didn't add up. And now THE SHADOW WAVE and the rest of Rasha's fleet was docking. He had to warn his Holt Rudderwake quickly. It was days away but Holt Lutra would be safe. So he started to his holt to warn them and get soldiers --- Lady Esmeralda emerged shaken from the silken tent. The slightest mention of her family's betrayal was enough to make the vixen snarl with anger. Oh yes, she thought, she would have revenge on those woodlanders. Her thoughts were interrupted by the thumping noises of Lord Sylk as he hobbled up on the ornate spearhaft. Baring his teeth he rasped," Milady, the corsairs have attacked an otter holt." Lady Esmeralda's eyes flashed with rage. She called for Sabrin to come to her. The fox prince's head appeared between the place where the embroidered scarlet silk was slit to make a door. Sabrin blinked and then sighed "Mother, must I?" he asked. The vixen would have never stood for such insubordination from a soldier, but he was her son "Come here now, Sabrin or I will call the guards upon you!" she said, adopting a rather crueler manner than even before. The young fox came out of the tent at a leisurly pace, looking above at the stars nearly obscured by the mists. "The rest is over! Lord Sylk regather the troops, we must march faster, we must reach the destination before sunrise. We must dissuade the corsairs from further distractions. ONWARD!" Esmeralda cried. The vermin-queen climbed into her armoured litter again. How dare those corsairs stray from the path she had so carefully wrought! she thought to herself. The delicate strands of gems on her forehead suddenly seemed very heavy. She was becoming drowsy, yet she could not, would not, sleep for anticipation. Her victory drew closer with each nearly silent footstep of her army. It was rather good to be queen, she thought, half dreaming, half awake. Esmeralda awoke to the sound of Lord Sylk's spear thwacking against the ground. That was really all she could take from her second in command. She signaled for the litterbearers to stop with a lazy hand motion out of the litter curtain. Then the vixen gracefully drew the chainmail curtains open. Esmeralda saw that the sky had turned to a blood red dawn, a color which brought the slightest of smiles to her savage mouth. Lord Sylk turned his rather bushy head towards his queens litter and saw that she was motioning for him to come.